Scotland Men's Football Team - BBC Sport (2024)

You don't need numbers to tell you Scotland were rotten at the Euros. We all saw it.

But a dig into the statistics can help to show where it all went wrong for Steve Clarke's side in Germany.

The main - and very apparent issue - was Scotland's lack of cutting edge in all three encounters in the tournament.

Their 17 shots are the joint fewest since groups were introduced at the Euros in 1990, a paltry total matched only by Northern Ireland in 2016, who advanced to the knockouts that year with three points.

Registering an xG of 0.95 is another low in this year's tournament, as is a passing accuracy of just 57.9% in the final third. When Scotland did make a rare foray forward the absence of quality was glaring.

Where else scuppered Scots?

As some teams in this tournament have shown, a goal-shy side can still progress out of the groups if there's a steely defence at the back.

After the mauling in Munich by hosts Germany, the backline improved against Switzerland and Hungary... but they could hardly have played worse.

Scotland conceded an xG of 4.5 in their three outings, though had to pick the ball out the back of the net on seven occasions.

Despite keeping his side in the tournament at points in the Hungary decider, Angus Gunn's differential between goals conceded and the xG of the shots on target he faced of 1.52 is the worst of any goalkeeper in the tournament. Simply put, he should have kept more out.

Clarke drew the ire of some fans for a perceived hesitance to make subs. He used 18 players - the second fewest players of any coach at the tournament - while naming the fifth-oldest team based on the average age across the three starting line-ups.

Could Scotland have lived a different story with a bit more youth and energy?

Is there a silver lining?

Beyond the immense display of the wonderful Tartan Army, the positives to take from our German jaunt are scarce.

However, the numbers show that Jack Hendry wasn't scared to get stuck in against some high-quality opposition.

The 29-year-old was in the top 20 players for duels at the tournament, coming in at joint third for duels attempted with 23. Hendry won 69.6% of those, ranking at 18th.

Higher up the park, only Georgia's Giorgi Kochorashvili accrued more pressures applied than Scotland midfielder Scott McTominay, who ran himself ragged off the back of an injury lay-off.

He may have applied pressure on the pitch, but Scotland's dismal showings this summer means there's now increased pressure off it for Clarke and his players.

Scotland fans, we asked for your thoughts on Steve Clarke as the national team's manager after the disappointing group-stage exit at Euro 2024.

It's fair to say opinion was split on whether Clarke is the right man to take Scotland forward.

First, here is what some of his backers said...

Robin: He is the right person. He now has experience of managing an international side, and qualified for two final stage tournaments. What is missing is players good enough to play at that level.

Stephen: To be honest I didn't think we would win any of the games, maybe a draw against Hungary. I think Clarke has been very good and had moved away from his defensive, build into the game approach. But he has no option to really change. We have the Scott McTominay syndrome of Man Utd: he is our top scorer. Say no more. I vote to support him.

Andrew: He has turned the team around from where they were when he took the job. He has taken us to consecutive Euro championships, we lost key players leading up to the tournament which was a blow We don’t have a large pool of talent to pick from, so we did as best as we could with the players we have. We shouldn’t be questioning whether Clarke is the right man to take us to the next level, instead we should be asking if he wants to continue trying to take us to the next level.

Ryan: The amount of criticism Clarke is getting is ridiculous. Yes, we could have done much better at the Euros and we never really showcased our full ability. I don’t think our past two knockout stages should eradicate the brilliant job Clarke has done to rebuild this team. Have faith and show support. I guarantee he will get us to another major tournament in his time as manager.

Del: Clarke should be supported for the next five to eight years

Anon: Yes, of course Clarke should remain in charge. There were factors outside of his control this time round like the pre-tournament injuries. The players also have to take responsibility as well.

'Thanks for his efforts but we need to move on'

And now for those who would like to see someone new at the helm...

Charlie: Clarke has done a good job to get us to where we are but it's time for a change. Either David Moyes or Derek McInnes would be the ideal candidates.

Marco: Time for Clarke to go as its clear that he is picking players who are his pals, regardless if they put in a bad performance or not he still stands by them and picks them no matter what.

Anon: Clarke's football is too negative, he is being found out now. Time for a new attack-minded coach. Thanks for his efforts but now we need to move on.

Calum: I've always been a big Clarke defender and he deserves a lot of credit for taking us to two Euros, but we haven't progressed and looked really short on belief in two of the three games (like Euro 2020). He has taken us as far as he can and we need a fresh start now. I'd ask Moyes.

John: Respect to Clarke for getting us to the Euros but I think it's time for a change. We have a decent nucleus of players but what was glaringly obvious last week and probably since qualifying is a few injuries and the whole structure falls apart.

Matthew: Clarke is too negative to take Scotland any further than he has. He did a fantastic job to get us to the Euros with games to spare, but he has reached his limit. The current narrative that we lack the quality is just not true - other countries with arguably less talented squads are at least giving it a go at the Euros and not playing with zero strikers or urgency.